Catastrophy in Asia

Not to take attention away from the victims, but I just have to comment on the audacity of Bush. He has created his own coalition (which includes Japan, Australia, and I think India), separate from the UN to assist the nations that were hit.
The one time where nations can put aside differences and exude unprecedented levels of compassion and this chimp has to, just has to throw politics into the whole goddamn thing.

I'd also like to point out that the self-appointed leader of the international rescue coalition (George Bush, not Kofi Annan) originally offered to donate $15 million. By comparison, the British government originally offered £15 million (about $29 million). When it was pointed out that $15 million was less than half what he was planning to spend on his inauguration party, Bush increased it to $35 million. The British government increased its donation to £50 million ($96 million). So he offers a fraction of what Britain gives and he proclaims himself the leader? I believe the expression in Texas is 'all hat and no cattle'.

UPDATE: I discovered that the United States' extra $20 million isn't a gift - Bush is offering to lend it to the affected nations. As well as Britain, several other governments are each giving more the the US - Sweden ($75 million), France, Canada, Australia, Japan, Germany, Switzerland and Norway. How come the four biggest donors aren't even in Bush's 'leading' coalition?

Honestly I think that all those talks in millions are far from enough. Large developed nations should be offering anything from half a billion to a billion dollars. Somehow I belive international humanitarian aid agencies such as UNICEF and Red Cross will bring in much more cash then all the contibuting nations put together.

In the aftermath of a cataclysm like the Asian tsunami, speculation can run wild. Reserving judgment until we really know what happened, here is a list of salient questions and answers that I,ve compiled from news reports, government and other reliable sources.

Q: Is underwater nuclear testing common?

A: Yes, The United States has conducted 1,054 tests of nuclear devices between July 16, 1945 and September 23, 1992. Before 1962, all the tests were atmospheric (on land or in the Pacific or Atlantic oceans) but overall the majority - 839 - were underground tests. From 1966 to 1990, 167 French nuclear test explosions have been performed on two atolls in French Polynesia, Morurua and Fangataua. Of the 167 tests, 44 were atmospheric. Atmospheric explosions were carried out until 1974, but only underground tests after that. The underground tests have been conducted at the bottom of shafts bored 500-1200 meters into the basalt core of the atoll. Initially these shafts were drilled in the outer rim of the atoll. In 1981, most likely due to the weakening of that rim, the tests with higher yields were shifted to shafts drilled under the lagoon itself.

Q: What are the effects of underwater nuclear testing?

A: To quote from a 1995 case brought against the French government, Case T-219/95 R, by Marie-Th&eacute;r&egrave;se Danielsson, Pierre Largenteau and Edwin Haoa, all residing in Tahiti, French Polynesia: "Short-term effects include geological damage and the venting of gaseous and volatile fission products into the biosphere. Nuclear tests, the applicants say, can cause landslides and did indeed cause a major underwater landslide at Mururoa in 1979, when a nuclear device was exploded after jamming half-way down its shaft. Since the geology of Mururoa is already unstable due to large-scale fracturing caused by previous tests, further major landslides are likely. Such landslides in the past have given rise to tsunamis causing coastal damage in areas as far away as Pitcairn and Tahiti and endangering residences such as that of Ms. Danielsson. They can also release radioactive material into the sea, with catastrophic effects on the food chain in an area such as French Polynesia where fish is an important part of the diet.

Q: What were the effects of the Murarao landslide?

A: It shifted at least one million cubic meters of coral and rock and created a cavity, probably 140 meters in diameter and produced a major tidal wave comparable to a tsunami, which spread through the Tuamotu Archipelago and injured people on the southern part of Moruroa Atoll. French authorities initially denied that any mishap had occurred and declared that the tidal wave was of natural origin, but in a publication in 1985 they did acknowledge "the accident of 25 July 1979".

Q: Can landslides create tsunamis?

A: Research on underwater landslides is new and it is only in recent years that the potentially catastrophic results of a landslide have become known. Dr Summerhayes, Director of the Institute of Oceanographic Sciences in the United Kingdom, is quoted in the Independent Newspaper on 9 September 1995 as saying that volcanic islands like Mururoa were:

"... inherently unstable and may fail given an appropriate trigger like an earthquake or a very large explosion. Failure is likely to cause a giant submarine landslide which may demolish parts of the island and could create a tidal wave that may itself damage coastal installations on other islands nearby."

Furthermore he stated that the creation of such a tidal wave was "a general threat to coasts as far away as New Zealand and Australia."